Xinjiang through my eyes: Ode to the poplar tree

Just a few leaves turning dry and white were enough to worry Aili, who feared disease might spread through the poplar forest. As head of a poplar management station in China's Xinjiang, he has spent years crossing the desert to contain health threats to these resilient "hero trees", a green corridor shielding oases from encroaching sands. For rangers like Aili, protecting them means safeguarding an ecosystem and our shared future.